Bilé
is a character in the ''
Lebor Gabála Érenn
''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of the Taking of Ireland"), known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'', is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language intended to be a history of Ireland and the Irish fro ...
'', a medieval Christian history of Ireland and the Irish (or
Gaels
The Gaels ( ; ga, Na Gaeil ; gd, Na Gàidheil ; gv, Ny Gaeil ) are an ethnolinguistic group native to Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man in the British Isles. They are associated with the Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic langu ...
), and in the genealogies of
John O'Hart
John O'Hart (1824–1902) was an Irish genealogist. He was born in Crossmolina, County Mayo, Ireland. A committed Roman Catholic and Irish nationalist, O'Hart had originally planned to become a priest but instead spent two years as a poli ...
based on this tradition. He is described as a king of
Galicia, an ancestor of the Gaels, the son of
Breogan, and the father of
Milesius.
The ''Lebor Gabála'' purports to be an account of the Gaels' descent from
Adam through the
sons of Noah and how they came to Ireland. The tale relates that the Gaels spent 440 years wandering the Earth and underwent a series of tribulations. Eventually, the Gaels sailed to
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
and conquered it. There, one of their leaders, Breogán, founded a city called Brigantia and built a great tower. From the top of the tower, his son Íth glimpses Ireland. The Gaels—including some of Breogán's sons—sailed to Ireland from Brigantia and took it from the
Tuatha Dé Danann
The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the goddess Danu"), also known by the earlier name Tuath Dé ("tribe of the gods"), are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. Many of them are thought to represent deities of pre-Christian Gae ...
, the Irish pagan gods.
Brigantia likely refers to
A Coruña
A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...
in Galicia (which was then known as Brigantium)
[''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "A Coruña".] and Breogán's tower is likely based on the
Tower of Hercules
The Tower of Hercules ( es, Torre de Hércules) is the oldest existent lighthouse known. It has an ancient Roman origin on a peninsula about from the centre of A Coruña, Galicia, in north-western Spain. Until the 20th century, it was known a ...
(which was built at A Coruña by the Romans) or
the Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel ( he, , ''Mīgdal Bāḇel'') narrative in Genesis 11:1–9 is an origin myth meant to explain why the world's peoples speak different languages.
According to the story, a united human race speaking a single language and mi ...
. The idea that the Irish Gaels came from Iberia may be based on the similarity of the names ''Iberia'' and ''
Hibernia
''Hibernia'' () is the Classical Latin name for Ireland. The name ''Hibernia'' was taken from Greek geographical accounts. During his exploration of northwest Europe (c. 320 BC), Pytheas of Massalia called the island ''Iérnē'' (written ). ...
'' and the names ''Galicia'' and ''Gael''.
Bilé is listed as the father of Fuat, a son who traveled to Inis Magdana, Moagdéda, or Mor-Oc Diada ("Great Young Divine"), an island where no man could tell a lie; Fuat brought a piece of sod from Inis Mor-Oc Diada back to Ireland, which he placed under his seat of judgement, and which turned upside down whenever he spoke a lie.
References
Galician mythology
Legendary Irish kings
{{Celt-myth-stub